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World Diabetes Day is next Tuesday (14 November), and on that day is commemorated the birthday of the Canadian Dr Frederick Banting.
Along with US scientist Charles Best, in 1921, Dr Frederick first discovered how to isolate and then extract insulin from the pancreas (initially from dogs) which, once purified, could be injected into patients with Type 1 diabetes.
Until their discovery, patients with Type 1 diabetes (whose own pancreas cannot produce insulin which is vital for the control of body sugar) were treated with a strict low-calorie, no carbohydrate diet. But this regime, which often necessitated an intake as low as 500 calories a day, had its consequences since slow starvation, like diabetes, drained patients of their energy and strength, leaving them semi-invalids.
To mark World Diabetes Day, the Castle Quay Pharmacy is offering free blood glucose testing from 8.00 am to 6.00 pm to identify Type 2 diabetes and raise awareness of the condition. The patron of Diabetes Jersey, Dr Karen Kyd, wife of the Lt Governor, will be visiting the pharmacy at 9.15 am to observe the testing process.
Bill O’Brien, chairman of Diabetes Jersey, says: “The charity is very grateful to both Dr Kyd for her support and to Castle Quay’s prescribing pharmacist, Nima Rad, for his involvement in this most significant day. I urge any adult, male or female, who is overweight, does little exercise and might already have diabetes somewhere in the family, to be tested for Type 2 diabetes to take advantage of this very welcome free facility. Type 2 diabetes, if detected early, can be managed, or even reversed. The test is a simple finger prick and takes just a minute or two."
For further information please contact Peter Tabb, tel: 07797 721275
More information about the charity can be obtained from the websites below:
Diabetes Jersey
Website address: www.diabetesjersey.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/diabetesjersey
Twitter: www.twitter.com/jerseydiabetes
